The National Information Technology Development Agency has awarded scholarship to 80 Nigerian youths to undertake postgraduate studies in various fields of Information Technology and related disciplines.
At a ceremony in Abuja to disburse the award to the students who scaled the process of selection, the Director General of NITDA, Mr. Peter Jack, urged scholars to be good ambassadors of the country.
He also advised the students to focus on technologies that could solve real life challenges in the country and to develop alliances that can be helpful to them in the development of their careers in the future.
The NITDA boss urged them to sharpen their entrepreneurial skills, adding that the agency’s innovative centres would help them fulfil their dreams should they decide to go into entrepreneurship on completion of their programmes.
Jack said, “NITDA is already embarking on the creation of IT parks and innovation hubs. We intend to raise support centres. The intention is to bring Information and Communication Technology to the doorsteps of every Nigerian. We plan to create 600,000 IT entrepreneurs and 1.2 million jobs.
“We are working closely to synergise our resources with other agencies in the country. Substantial resources have been invested in the last few years to build capacity in the ICT sector.
“There is a need for us to play among the top players in the ICT sector by the year 2020. We enjoin you to do your best to make Nigeria proud. Innovation is the way forward to improve the quality of life in Nigeria.”
The scholarship programme is based on merit and covers the six geo – political zones of the country.
While 74 of the graduates (two from each of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory) will be pursuing master’s degree programmes, six of them selected from six geo-political zones of the country will be pursuing doctorate degrees in Information Technology and related fields.
In a related development, the agency on Friday graduated 50 persons living with challenges from a computer training programme.
At the closing ceremony, each of the participants was presented with a laptop to be able to put into practice what they had learnt during the training programme which lasted for one week.
The Director of Human Resources and Administration, Mr. Jonathan Olaonipekun, who represented the Director General, said the new vision at the agency was to build capacity in all Nigerians irrespective of their background.
The training programme was organised in alliance with non-governmental organisation, Global Hope and Justice for the Less Privileged.
In his address, the President of Global Hope and Justice for the Less Privileged, Mr. Paul Ihekwoaba, described the training as one of its kind.
Ihekwoaba said the training would go a long way in addressing some of the issues surrounding the youth with disabilities in the area of ICT and ensure an inclusive human development.
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